METAIRIE, La. -- The New Orleans Saints' pass defense has been masterful at times this season.
They've help set the tone for the defense and anchored the team on occasion, and Tyrann Mathieu's pick-six to get the party started in a 34-0 win at the New England Patriots last week is a shining example.
The defensive back unit has weathered injuries and a suspension, and the Saints have climbed to the top of the league with 37 pass breakups.
Now they'll face Houston Texans rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud, who has played mostly mistake-free football, on Sunday (1 p.m. ET, Fox) at NRG Stadium.
"He's playing great," Saints cornerback Alontae Taylor said of the No. 2 pick. "I think it's just going to get better for him. He's been setting records already only going into Week 6 of his NFL career. Big for him, but [he's going against] I think one of the best defenses in the country. He's got to show those same numbers [this week]."
Stroud has yet to throw an interception in 186 passes, the most to start an NFL career, and is averaging 292.2 passing yards per game -- which ranks third. He's one of only three quarterbacks (with at least 50 passes) who has not thrown an interception this season, despite ranking higher than the league average in both average air yards and average pressure percentage.
The Saints (3-2) have held rookie quarterbacks to two touchdown passes in their last six games against them, but picked off only one (three interceptions against Patriots quarterback Mac Jones in 2020). The last rookie to do serious damage to the Saints was Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert, who threw four touchdown passes and no interceptions against them in 2020.
That's a promising trend for a team that's already faced the No. 1 pick in Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young this season. While they didn't intercept Young, they had one strip sack and almost had a second one that was negated by a penalty.
Saints quarterback Derek Carr said the defense was "unbelievable" and noted the veteran makeup of the group has made them tough to go up against since they know how to disguise their looks. That'll be a challenge for Stroud, he said.
"I don't know who he's played ... all I know is that he's been super successful, and C.J.'s doing a great job," Carr said. "I'm happy for him but ... our defense makes it tough on anybody, a rookie or not a rookie."
Saints coach Dennis Allen said he discussed Stroud's play with the team Wednesday, making sure they understood what they would be dealing with come Sunday.
"I told the team today that I think the quarterback is playing at a high level, and I'm not talking about a high level for a rookie, I'm talking about a high level for an NFL quarterback," Allen said.
"We'll have our hands full Sunday," Mathieu added.
This will be the first time in several weeks that the Saints will likely have their entire starting secondary back, with safety Marcus Maye returning from his three-game suspension.
The Saints also dealt with injuries to cornerback Paulson Adebo, who missed Weeks 3 and 4 with an injury, and to Maye's backup Jordan Howden, who didn't play in Week 3 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
But the rotating cast in the secondary hasn't really mattered to the Saints and their ability to force turnovers.
They picked off Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill three times in Week 1. Safety Lonnie Johnson Jr. intercepted Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love in Week 3 despite playing only eight snaps. Reserve cornerback Isaac Yiadom had an interception against Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield.
Six different players in the secondary have an interception this season, with linebacker Pete Werner catching the seventh with an assist from Howden, who hit the ball out of the hands of running back Ty Montgomery II on Sunday.
They've already matched last season's total of seven interceptions and are currently tied for third in the league.
"It's all about the ball," Mathieu said. "Obviously you want to execute your assignments, play in and play out, but I think defensively everything you do is about the ball -- how can we give it back to our offense, how can we take it away?
"As long as we kind of keep that mentality, I think we'll be alright."
That ability to take the ball away has carried the team through some rough patches on the offensive side.
It's also created a competition within the secondary that's grown in confidence in every game. When Mathieu returned his interception for a score against the Patriots, Howden was thinking one thing after the celebration died down.
He wanted one too.
"Pretty much means, 'OK, I'm next,'" Howden said Monday when asked about Mathieu's pick. "I'm one of the few guys in the room without a pick now, so my mentality is 'I've got to get one now. I can't be one of the only guys in the room without one.'"
The same goes for Taylor, a second-year player who is still looking for his first interception. Taylor currently leads the team with seven pass breakups, and, he joked, that his one interception leads the defensive backs.
"I'll take my wins right now," he said with a smile.
That's all part of the secondary mindset that lends itself to competition. Interceptions are just one piece of the puzzle for a group that prides itself on winning everything.
"I think everybody is just attacking the ball," Taylor said. "We're in the right place at the right time and making plays on the ball. Everybody could say it's the coaching or it's this or that, but I think it's the mindset. It's the challenge we have in our DB room right now. ... We have a competition on everything. Pick-sixes, sacks, whatever it is, we want to be the best at that."
And while Taylor said they weren't particularly focusing on the possibility of giving a rookie his first interception, they're all hungry for more turnovers -- which the Texans (2-3), who are tied for the second fewest with two, rarely commit.
"We don't prey on anybody's downfall, right? But like I said, we've been making turnovers week in and week out, so C.J. just has to make sure that he comes with his 'A' game," Taylor said. "I know we're going to come with ours. And maybe this week will be the week he throws his first pick."